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Visitor Comments: 19

(19)
The Herzlia Grade Six Class,
June 23, 2011 12:29 PM

This is why.

The reason we pray is because if we believe there is someone out there trying to make your hopes come true, we want to believe it. The worse the situation, the more we think "I know there is someone listening." If G-d intended for us to pray for no reason, just for his pleasure, he wouldn't have let bad things happen in this world. We all depend on the fact that love and trust in Hashem is all it takes for miracles to come true. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. But the people who believe in him when they pray, as opposed to just hoping he's there, those are the people who get their miracle. Maybe not exactly what they asked for, but Hashem hears us all and gives us what he thinks we need and knows he can change.

(18)
Anonymous,
March 16, 2011 10:42 PM

its so sad and i really dont no y its put under jewlarious

I have a friend who has a sister sorta like that and i really admire her for not always being a pesamist about her sisters health

(17)
Anonymous,
November 13, 2010 7:53 PM

somtimes g-d says no!

(16)
Bea,
November 9, 2010 10:47 PM

To Anonymous (#21)

Your comments are very nice, but you are wrong on the point that prayer "was popularized immediately prior to and subsequent the destruction of the second temple when the Rabbis became ascendant and changed much of our religion."
First of all: the Rabbis NEVER changed our religion! It always was the same. Some of the Talmud is just written down practices that were done before but never written, and others are things that were done to strengthen existing practices.
Second: You may not know this, but a sacrifice without prayer is worthless. Everyone prayed before the formal writing down of a specific format. The only difference was that they didn't say the exact same words that are printed in our prayerbook. Those people were en tuned to the spiritual world so well that they knew exactly what to say and how to say it .

(15)
Anonymous,
November 7, 2010 11:51 PM

G_d always answers prayers.

the answer may not be the one you seek, but the one that G_d wants you to have. His will be done. Amen.

(14)
Filo-Mei,
November 5, 2010 12:24 AM

"to be closer to god"

to pray or not to pray, my understanding is; our every day life has been planned by the god we worship the only way to reach out to him is to pray with
thanksgiving daily

(13)
Anonymous,
November 4, 2010 4:36 PM

I find #4's comment to be very disturbing, particularly when he refers to the Down's Syndrome woman as a retard. Just because some lack the mental capacities with which G-d blessed you does not mean that they are inferior to you and certainly does not give you the authority to designate them as such. Experience has taught me that people with that condition have a very different worldview. They are not distracted by all the trivialities that lead us astray and they are much more focused on what is truly important. They are more in sync with spirituality. What they don't have intellectually, thay make up for in many other areas. That's why she believed in G-d and her sister did not. Her sister was too angry and too disappointed. But this woman was not bogged down by that. They're truly beautiful people, and we could learn a lot from them if we stop looking down on them. We make a big mistake when we assume that people who are different from us are inferior to us. LEARN FROM EVERY PERSON,

(12)
Anonymous,
November 4, 2010 2:31 AM

Prayer is a difficult concept. Seperation of church and state is not.

There are no simple answers regarding why we pray. the Torah actually commands us to make sacrifices to get close to G-d. Prayer is a rabbinical concept that was popularized immediately prior to and subsequent the destruction of the second temple when the Rabbis became ascendant and changed much of our religion. However, there is no question that prayer is comfoting to us in times of need and has a useful function psychicly. So why not allow prayer in schools. The truth is that individual silent prayer that does not have a coercive effect on others is allowed in school. We all have prayed before that big test that we knew we didn't study enough for. However, when a school or a teacher mandates prayer or allows a group to use the publicly financed facility for prayer, that's coercive and is creating the establishment of religion by providing facilities for its practice. Religious people have their own facilities, not controlled by the state. The state shouldn't force a religious perspective, no matter how watered down, to be foisted on people using public facilities.

(11)
Anonymous,
November 3, 2010 3:00 PM

Simplification of the Complex

Bernie wrote about the holocaust: "They were lead off like sheep to be slaughtered." I understand this; however, within the context of today's world of speech, complex events written off with one liners is an over simplification that people are all too willing to accept as truth. Prayer is often taken that way. Like someone else wrote, that prayer is not "a vending machine where you put your two cents in and expect to get your prize." I do not pretend to understand all that is complex, but I do recognize a responsibility to not accept a blatant disregard for ideas I do not understand. If I did that, Torah would be nonexistent in my life. I pray. All the time. And as we all know, beware of what you pray for because you might just get it. Think about it. At least for a little while.

(10)
Yideshe Mama,
November 3, 2010 4:48 AM

We can pray and ask for anything we want but sometimes G-d says "No". We have to accept that answer too.

(9)
Anonymous,
November 2, 2010 10:25 PM

Taking No For an Answer

Powerful but disturbing . To turn HGod into a vending machine where you put your two cents in and expect to get your prize is a very childish view of prayer and the relationship one should strive to have with God.. We pray to God , but sometimes the answer to our prayers is "No", as hard as that might be to accept. God does what He deems is best for us, which is not necessarily what we might have wanted to happen. Sue might think she doesn't believe in God, but in truth her character is very angry at God, which is understandable. But her mistake was to cut off ties with Him. As long as you keep a dialogue open wtih HIm, you will feel His presence in your life. Without that, life is very lonely and very frightening.

(8)
Anonymous,
November 2, 2010 9:32 PM

AWESOME

(7)
Anonymous,
November 2, 2010 7:00 PM

Powerful :)

(6)
bernie rosenberg,
November 2, 2010 4:49 PM

i agree with the teacher. everything i ever prayed for was a was a waste! the holocaust is a perfect example. those people would have been better off preparing to listen and fight. they were lead off like sheep to be slaughtered.

(5)
Joyce,
November 2, 2010 3:54 PM

Sometimes the answer is "No"

I was reminded of an old M*A*S*H episode, where a soldier thought he was Jesus. He was asked if G0d answers prayers and he said "Yes. Sometimes the answer is no."

(4)
Anonymous,
November 2, 2010 3:51 PM

Typical Hollywood

It's so like Hollywood to have the wise woman with the good job show that there is no G-d while only the "retards" like her sister who have diminished mental capacity are the ones who "believe". Another good reason that most frum Jews don't watch these shows....

(3)
Anonymous,
November 2, 2010 7:12 AM

WOW !!!

WOW !!!

(2)
chaim,
November 1, 2010 6:00 PM

To me the main line was at the end..."G-D NEVER makes mistakes"! Wow! It's so true, yet so sad that we don't always think that.
Thanks so much, you really just gave me a new sense of being!

(1)
berakah,
November 1, 2010 3:47 PM

Communication

Prayer to me is communication with the Almighty. Oftentimes it's conversational-he is Abba after all, and sometimes it's petitions, thanksgiving, praise, etc. It is a hard thing to pray, as the character in the film clip and not receive an answer, but as the book of Isaiah says, His ways are not our ways. That does not discourage me from continuing to pray. His ways are best and for our good, despite what we may see in the natural.

I just got married and have an important question: Can we eat rice on Passover? My wife grew up eating it, and I did not. Is this just a matter of family tradition?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

The Torah instructs a Jew not to eat (or even possess) chametz all seven days of Passover (Exodus 13:3). "Chametz" is defined as any of the five grains (wheat, spelt, barley, oats, and rye) that came into contact with water for more than 18 minutes. Chametz is a serious Torah prohibition, and for that reason we take extra protective measures on Passover to prevent any mistakes.

Hence the category of food called "kitniyot" (sometimes referred to generically as "legumes"). This includes rice, corn, soy beans, string beans, peas, lentils, peanuts, mustard, sesame seeds and poppy seeds. Even though kitniyot cannot technically become chametz, Ashkenazi Jews do not eat them on Passover. Why?

Products of kitniyot often appear like chametz products. For example, it can be hard to distinguish between rice flour (kitniyot) and wheat flour (chametz). Also, chametz grains may become inadvertently mixed together with kitniyot. Therefore, to prevent confusion, all kitniyot were prohibited.

In Jewish law, there is one important distinction between chametz and kitniyot. During Passover, it is forbidden to even have chametz in one's possession (hence the custom of "selling chametz"). Whereas it is permitted to own kitniyot during Passover and even to use it - not for eating - but for things like baby powder which contains cornstarch. Similarly, someone who is sick is allowed to take medicine containing kitniyot.

What about derivatives of kitniyot - e.g. corn oil, peanut oil, etc? This is a difference of opinion. Many will use kitniyot-based oils on Passover, while others are strict and only use olive or walnut oil.

Finally, there is one product called "quinoa" (pronounced "ken-wah" or "kin-o-ah") that is permitted on Passover even for Ashkenazim. Although it resembles a grain, it is technically a grass, and was never included in the prohibition against kitniyot. It is prepared like rice and has a very high protein content. (It's excellent in "cholent" stew!) In the United States and elsewhere, mainstream kosher supervision agencies certify it "Kosher for Passover" -- look for the label.

Interestingly, the Sefardi Jewish community does not have a prohibition against kitniyot. This creates the strange situation, for example, where one family could be eating rice on Passover - when their neighbors will not. So am I going to guess here that you are Ashkenazi and your wife is Sefardi. Am I right?

Yahrtzeit of Rabbi Moses ben Nachman (1194-1270), known as Nachmanides, and by the acronym of his name, Ramban. Born in Spain, he was a physician by trade, but was best-known for authoring brilliant commentaries on the Bible, Talmud, and philosophy. In 1263, King James of Spain authorized a disputation (religious debate) between Nachmanides and a Jewish convert to Christianity, Pablo Christiani. Nachmanides reluctantly agreed to take part, only after being assured by the king that he would have full freedom of expression. Nachmanides won the debate, which earned the king's respect and a prize of 300 gold coins. But this incensed the Church: Nachmanides was charged with blasphemy and he was forced to flee Spain. So at age 72, Nachmanides moved to Jerusalem. He was struck by the desolation in the Holy City -- there were so few Jews that he could not even find a minyan to pray. Nachmanides immediately set about rebuilding the Jewish community. The Ramban Synagogue stands today in Jerusalem's Old City, a living testimony to his efforts.

It's easy to be intimidated by mean people. See through their mask. Underneath is an insecure and unhappy person. They are alienated from others because they are alienated from themselves.

Have compassion for them. Not pity, not condemning, not fear, but compassion. Feel for their suffering. Identify with their core humanity. You might be able to influence them for the good. You might not. Either way your compassion frees you from their destructiveness. And if you would like to help them change, compassion gives you a chance to succeed.

It is the nature of a person to be influenced by his fellows and comrades (Rambam, Hil. De'os 6:1).

We can never escape the influence of our environment. Our life-style impacts upon us and, as if by osmosis, penetrates our skin and becomes part of us.

Our environment today is thoroughly computerized. Computer intelligence is no longer a science-fiction fantasy, but an everyday occurrence. Some computers can even carry out complete interviews. The computer asks questions, receives answers, interprets these answers, and uses its newly acquired information to ask new questions.

Still, while computers may be able to think, they cannot feel. The uniqueness of human beings is therefore no longer in their intellect, but in their emotions.

We must be extremely careful not to allow ourselves to become human computers that are devoid of feelings. Our culture is in danger of losing this essential aspect of humanity, remaining only with intellect. Because we communicate so much with unfeeling computers, we are in danger of becoming disconnected from our own feelings and oblivious to the feelings of others.

As we check in at our jobs, and the computer on our desk greets us with, "Good morning, Mr. Smith. Today is Wednesday, and here is the agenda for today," let us remember that this machine may indeed be brilliant, but it cannot laugh or cry. It cannot be happy if we succeed, or sad if we fail.

Today I shall...

try to remain a human being in every way - by keeping in touch with my own feelings and being sensitive to the feelings of others.

With stories and insights,
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